It had been ten days since... God, I still couldn't form the words even in the confines of my mind. Ten days since my complete and total breakdown. Ten days since I'd woken up from my moving coma in front of Sam's house. Ten days since he and Jack had tried to make me feel better in vain. Nothing had helped, I'd just continuously cycled through sobbing for hours and being numb for a much shorter time. I'd been pelted with planes in that time and - even though I'd read most of them - I hadn't bothered to respond. Sam didn't say anything about me leaving and had let me have free-roam of his house for the entire time. It was only when one of my birds finally showed up with an image of Caeden's headstone that I left.

I walked back to Chicago, still not wanting to fly. I think that part of the reason I couldn't muster the motivation or effort was that flying had always meant more to me than travel. They'd been freedom and happiness and proof of the magic I'd hungered for as long as I could remember. But now there was no happiness. There was no joy in magic - in fact, I was almost resenting it at that point in time. And, because of the desolation I was sinking down into, there was no freedom. It was holding me hostage and I had no will to fight my way out. Flying seemed like a lie.

My bird had flown next to me the entire way. It didn't talk and it's only noises were that of paper rustling, but it was enough comfort that I didn't really cry on my way there. It showed me to the subject of the picture it had shown me. It had taken me two weeks to walk back here. It's been a month. I stared at the sparkling tombstone, freshly cut and newly laid. It wasn't anything special but it was gleaming like something sacred. I sat down next to the mound that barely had grass covering it.

I sat there for more than an hour before I finally found the words I wanted. "I'm sorry I wasn't there for the funeral. I know no one would have known either way but... I've been watching out for everyone, you know. Lizzie, Isabella, Kevin. I know I haven't been to see you and Tanya since Christmas eight years ago when Isabella was about to go to college." I stopped for a moment to let the lump rising in my throat die. "Saying I was busy isn't really a good excuse but it's the truth." I shook my head. "I should never have been too busy for you..."

I had to wipe away the mist in my eyes so I stopped to take a deep breath. As I thought of what I wanted to say I couldn't help the bitterness I still felt over the fact that even if I'd said all this when he was still here he wouldn't have heard me. "Why? Why did you have to grow up?" My voice was as watery as my eyes. "Why did you stop believing in me?" I couldn't read the words on the stone anymore. "You're my brother! You promised me you'd remember me - that you'd never not believe in me!" My tears were laced with growing fury. Every ounce of anger I'd subdued over the years came back then as a ferocious beast that sought to become real. "Why did you lie to me?! Why did you leave me?!" I picked up the only thing within arms reach - my bag - about to throw it at the tombstone. "How could you?!" My enraged scream tore through the air as my bag thudded into the stone, rocking it.

Immediately I dove forward, catching the stone and righting it. I stared at it with wide eyes, realizing I'd almost destroyed the only evidence that my brother had ever existed. Breathing hard I carefully grabbed my bag and sat back, my eyes slowly coming to rest on the mound instead of the stone. "I'm so sorry." I shook my head again. "I just - I've missed you so, so much. I've been so mad at you for letting me down but I know it's not your fault. I shouldn't blame you but I don't know who I should blame." I took a breath again. "I knew this day would come. I always knew... That night I first left, I almost didn't say goodbye to you because I knew that I'd have to say goodbye eventually... this way. I thought that if I told you then, this would be easier but it isn't." My voice was breaking but I didn't really care.

"I want you back, and I want you to see me. I want to tell you to your face everything that's happened since I became immortal but I can't..." I blinked but my vision was almost permanently blurry now. "I tried to run away from everyone but I can't." I shook my head as my face twisted again. "I can't force myself to stay away. I've never been able to." My tears dripped onto the ground I was clutching for dear life as I cried again for long enough that the sun had set by the time I was done. I rolled over and stared at the stars with eyes that felt frozen from the wind that passed over them. "I wish I could give you one last hug and tell you goodbye to your face." I sighed. "More than anything I really, really hope you went somewhere better than I did."

-

After I'd said my goodbyes to Caeden I spent a few months straight in my house. Nothing was really enough motivation for me to leave. I know it was borderline depression but I think the circumstances made it acceptable. I took a lot of walks around the Treehouse, reacquainting myself with the park and the wildlife. I slowly got to the point where I was crying once a week instead of once a day, and then I went multiple days without crying. It was slow and through everything I almost felt mortal again with mortal problems. Before I knew it a year had passed. I hadn't seen anyone the whole time but I had responded to the planes I'd been receiving.

I'd sent birds to everyone, telling them I wasn't okay yet but I was getting there. Telling everyone not to worry about me, letting them know I hadn't disappeared. The fairies had stopped by to see me a few times, in lieu of Tooth herself. I knew she was trying to not overstep her boundaries but still cared. The same went for Sandy who had sent a few Dream Sand animals to cheer me up a few times. Even Pitch sent a note asking if anything had happened when I didn't show up for our yearly pow-wow.

I was getting better. It took a long time, but I was. Jack and Sam sent me birds almost every day. It was as close as I was willing to go to seeing anyone face to face lately. I wasn't ready for anyone to tell me how sorry they were. I was in a fragile state where I felt fine by myself but the second anyone showed up I was likely to fall apart again. I didn't want that to happen.

It was bad enough that Sam and Jack saw me like that, I didn't want anyone else to see me so brokenhearted. Especially not Pitch. All those years ago when I'd first shown up and told him nothing scared me I hadn't been lying. It also wasn't accurate. There was nothing anyone could do that would ever scare me to the point of frozen terror. No one except for me. I wasn't scared of loving anyone, or getting close to people, or even being left. I knew what it felt like to be left and it wasn't soul shattering. I could attest to that now more than ever. What I was afraid of was breaking. I was afraid of caring for someone so much that when they left I was broken beyond reason. That was another reason I couldn't let anyone help me with this any more than they already had. I didn't want to break.

Another year passed and I tentatively went to one of my old haunts, where my believers used to meet me. I'd sent a note to Daniel, Madelynn and Bust's son, to tell him where I'd be so that my believers could be there - if they wanted to. After a two year absence, I wasn't so sure any of them wouldn't be mad at me for disappearing on them. It was a happy surprise to see a good number of them when I showed up.

During that year I made my triumphant return to those who believed in me. It was therapeutic in a way, knowing that they could all see me because they believed in not only who I was supposed to be, but who I was. They knew that I was flawed and they still not only accepted me but believed in me. I needed them as much as they needed me.

When I was almost back to my normal self - three years after coming back to the world - the Northern lights erupted across the sky, calling the Guardians together early. Though I hadn't attended any of the meetings in the past five years, I went to this one. When North unleashed the lights, it meant something was wrong.

I took my time flying. I hadn't asked for or accepted the winds' offered help for the five years I'd been recovering. I'd been trying to rediscover the beauty in the magic of the world - on my own. It made my travel time a few hours longer but I didn't mind too much. I still spoke to them on the trip there. On the way, when I was only about an hour away, I ran into Jack who was traveling much faster than I had been. He slowed down until we were at the same speed and hesitated a moment before speaking to me. We'd sort of been skating around the elephant in the room for five years now. "You saw the lights?"

I nodded. "Any idea what's happening? More Immortals gone?" That was the last thing I needed.

He shrugged. "No clue. I haven't seen any difference in the Fearlings so it's probably not Pitch acting out." He shrugged again. "Other than that, nothing." We sped on together, reaching the Pole at the same time with the winds whispering in our ears the whole way. We both entered through the ceiling, landing on the platform near the Globe like usual. Sandy and Tooth were there already and, as usual, Bunny was the last hold out.

Before I even set foot on the floor, Tooth had already rushed over to me. "Story!" She enveloped me in a hug which I returned. There was the slightest tingle at the back of my eyes when I instinctively knew why the hug was so enthusiastic. I'd held out long enough, though, to not break down anymore. "How are you doing?" She said it softly so only I could hear.

I shrugged a little. "Now? Alright."

"I am so, so sorry, Story." I squeezed her tighter before we separated. I gave her a grateful smile and walked over to Sandy to greet him. He smiled at me a little sadly, knowing why I'd been absent for years.

'You seem to be in better spirits than you have been.' His smile turned more cheerful. 'I'm happy to see you out and about.'

I glanced at Jack and Tooth. "I think that's the general concensus." I gave him a small smile before finding myself a chair. We speculated for a while on what we thought the reason for our summons was - interrupted temporarily by Bunny's arrival. Eventually, the only one we were waiting for was North.

He walked in scratching his head and started pacing. "North, what's up? The meeting's not for another month." I knew it wasn't Pitch, and as far as we knew the winds hadn't reported any new missing immortals. We'd all gotten quiet once he started pacing. We were waiting for his response... It wasn't like the Russian to stay silent.

Finally, he took a breath, halting in his back and forth. He stroked his beard and looked around at all of us before swinging his arms. "Manny has seen something in telescopes."

"What is it? Is it Fearlings - Pitch?" Tooth looked faintly worried.

North shook his head vehemently. "No, is not Earth telescopes... is ones pointed to space." His eyes and eyebrows shot up for a moment before he looked around at us again.

Bunny's ears twitched as he looked up in surprise. "What? Is it the Alliance? Have they found us?"

North shook his head again. "No, is nothing like that." He glanced at Sandy, who was silent as ever... and asleep. "Is Falling Star." Now we were all looking at Sandy.

"What's so important about a falling star? It's just a meteor that'll land on Earth if it doesn't burn up in entry first. What's the big deal?" I didn't understand the significance. Yeah, Sandy got here on a crashed star, but that was thousands of years ago.

North looked at me. "Is not normal Falling Star..." Jack tapped Sandy's shoulder to wake him up. The latter blinked and yawned. "Is Wishing Star Pilot."

Sandy blinked again, looking at North like he had two heads. Symbols appeared over his head, a question mark and a shooting star. 'Who?'

North shook his head again. "Will not know until the star lands."

"D'ya know where tha's gonna be?" Bunny.

North waved his hand in dismissal. "Somewhere over Antarctica, but I cannot pinpoint where."

Jack's head shot up. "Wait what? Hold up, time!" He held his hands in a T formation. "It's gonna crash-land over my house?! No way." He shook his head in adamant denial.

Tooth held her hands in a calming gesture to him. "Jack just hold on." She turned to North. "Is there any way we can find out? Or, at least, divert it's path if it is going to hit anywhere near the Sanctuary?"

"Is why I called you all here." He shrugged with his arms out. "Brainstorm."

-

Hours later, after we'd come up with a backup plan in case the star was going to touch down on the Sanctuary - Jack, Tooth, and Bunny had gone home. North was still figuring out some sort of system to monitor the star's trajectory. A little while ago, I had noticed that Sandy wasn't around, and so I was wandering around looking for him. I knew he hadn't left, he always used the opening in the roof and we'd been standing by the globe controls all afternoon.

I walked out onto the balcony out back. I figured it was worth checking out and lo and behold, there was the Sandman. He was sitting on a small Dream Sand cloud that was hovering just above the railing. Tendrils of sand were drifting off in multiple directions steadily, I assumed sending dreams to kids - the usual. He was staring up at the sky - darkened by polar night. This time, however, he wasn't looking at the moon. Just the stars and the vast expanse of space. "Sandy?" He looked at me, offering a smile. "You okay? You kind of wandered off."

He smiled apologetically at me. 'Sorry about that.' He looked back up at the sky.

I walked closer and leaned against the railing, glancing up towards the sky as I did. "What's going on? You nervous or something?"

He shook his head. 'Nothing like that.' He held his hands up in front of him and sand shapes started forming. 'During the Golden Age, there were hundreds of Star Pilots. It was an elite corp of pilots who's intuition and ability to spread happiness propelled us to a separate status. We didn't work under any one planet or Constellation's division. We served all of the worlds within the Alliance. We soared from one planet to another, granting the wishes of children where we could with sweet dreams. We were usually by ourselves on each run, but the corp was small enough that we all knew each other.'

I nodded as it started sinking in. "So one of your friends is on that Star."

He shrugged. 'It could be a new pilot as well. I do hope it is one of my friends... I miss them.' His expression became bittersweet and I felt for him. It had been thousands of years since he'd seen any of them. For all we knew they were all dead - even the immortal ones could have been killed by Fearlings during the war.

I put my arm around him in a sideways hug. "Why don't you stay at Jack's for a while, at least until the star lands. That way you can be there when they arrive." He perked up at that. "And if they're a little overwhelmed and need somewhere to cool off and figure out what all is going on, the Treehouse is always open."

He looked at me carefully. 'Are you sure?' I nodded in a so-so gesture. 'You're willing to let a stranger stay with you so soon after what has happened?'

I took a breath, composing my words. "If it's for you, yeah. Everyone deserves to have time to adjust. Besides, I can guarantee that we do things differently than the Alliance did. They're gonna need to assimilate and I doubt they're gonna want to do it in the ice cube that is the South Pole." Both of us giggled at that, Sandy's silent as ever. "How do you think they're gonna react to you here?"

He paused, looking at the sky again. 'I am not sure. Some of them may take it in stride but others might be shocked. I will know when they arrive.'

"Is there anyone you hope it's gonna be?" I watched him for a moment while he considered the question. I could see in his face that he most definitely wanted it to be someone, but that they probably were the past person who'd be on the meteor hurtling towards us as we spoke.

'Whether I wish for a certain Star Pilot or not, the individual on the Falling Star will not change regardless.'

-

After we left the Pole, Sandy moved into the Sanctuary until the star fell. I decided to visit as well - at least until I knew if I was going to have guests or not. I hadn't seen Del or Sel in years and I'd missed them. I didn't realize how much until Sel enveloped me in a hug the second I entered the airspace above. We hung there, midair, clutching each other for dear life. When I got inside I felt the thundering in the floor before Del burst into view and all but tackled me. It was like a giant puppy greeting you after you'd been gone on vacation.

Three days later, alarm bells went off at the Sanctuary. North concluded that it was going to land on the opposite side of Valkyrie Dome and we were all in the Library - Del halfway to a nap - when it happened. It sounded like a fog horn mixed with a low ringing. Del immediately sat up, actually looking ferocious for two point five seconds before he realized it was the Star. Sel and I rushed out of the room towards the big opening and soared up and out of it, Sandy a little ahead of us. Jack was nowhere in sight, but he'd been spending the past few days topside regardless, so he was probably already at the crash site.

Before we even made it to the mountain, I could see the glow emanating from behind it. It was twice as bright as Dream Sand but just as gold. When we rounded the Dome I saw what almost looked like a giant golden geode that had cracked open. The outside was glowing but fading quickly while the inside was sleek and filled with far more sophisticated machinery than I'd ever seen. Sandy had paused about twenty feet away, stunned. Sel stayed with him while I rushed to the crash site. Jack was already there, pulling a tall, slender woman out of the wreckage. "You need help?"

"Not with her, but there's another guy in there!"

I stared at the Star. Two pilots? I ran over and sure enough, there was an equally tall but not quite as slender man sitting unconscious in one of the pilots chairs. I looped my arms around his torso and hauled him out - expecting him to weigh well over 200 pounds by how muscular he looked. I was pleasantly surprised when he weighed a lot less. I dragged him out and laid him down next to where Jack had placed the woman. Looking at them side by side they were definitely related. They both looked like they were in their mid to late 20's, both had dark blonde, close-cropped hair, and very square faces. The girl was so skinny she was almost as anorexic looking as Mors. The boy was, however, was ripped. They were wearing identical jumpsuits that were silver and gold with accents of navy blue.

I looked up as Sandy glided over, jaw hanging. "You know them?"

He nodded, stunned. 'Ain and Aldebaran. They're twins who've never flown apart.' He shook his head in amazement. 'They're two of the finest Wishing Star Pilots I've ever met. How in the world did they end up this far away from the Alliance?'

"And if they're so great why'd they crash-land in my backyard?" We all looked at Jack. "What? It's a valid question."

"Never mind that, we should get them into the Sanctuary. It is far below freezing out here and we do not know if they can tolerate the cold or not." Sel picked up Aldebaran like he weighed two pounds - in actuality he weighed more like a hundred. Jack hiked Ain up onto his back before taking off back towards the entrance. Sandy and I followed them back inside and into the living-room where we found Del pacing.

"Are they okay? What happened? Who is it - does Sandy know them? What -" He paused when he saw all of us. "Why are there two of them?"

"They're twin pilots. Apparently, they never fly solo. No clue what they're doing here, though." Jack laid Ain on the couch while Sel looked around for somewhere to lay Aldebaran. Jack and I quickly shoved the bean-bag chairs together into a makeshift bed.

We all stood back a little, looking between the two of them. "So, uh... what do we do now?"

'They will wake up soon. However, it would probably help if Del stayed here and provided some extra heat. Star cockpits are usually very warm places and Star Pilots spend most of their lives inside of them.' Del nodded and scooted closer to the two of them, curling around them as best he could. 'If there was something ready for them when they woke up, I would greatly appreciate it, Jack. Do you have any food you could scrounge up?'

"I only understood half of that, but one word was food. I gotcha covered Sandy." Jack left the room, gesturing me to follow him. We got to the hallway and he leaned in to whisper. "Did you expect them to be so tall?"

I shook my head. "I was kind of expecting another Sandy."

"Me too!" We both giggled over that.

A few minutes later we returned with hot chocolate and Tostino's Pizza Rolls - which were still a thing after almost a hundred years. Sandy was sitting next to Ain, holding her hand. Del had fallen asleep and Sel was nowhere to be found. "Where'd Sel run off to?"

'Back to the library. They should be waking up in a bit.' Sandy smiled at us. 'I am grateful for your help with the two of them.'

I smiled back, shrugging. "No problem Sandy. Remember if they need to wind down I've got the room." He nodded absently, still staring at Ain.

Jack went off to take care of a few things like letting North and the others know what had happened. I stayed with Sandy and the twins. I watched Sandy while he held Ain's hand, and after almost ten minutes it dawned on me. "Youlike her don't you!" He jerked in surprise, looking at me in confusion. "You like Ain."

He blushed before looking down at her sleeping form again. It was weird to see him blush since it was almost silver. As he stared at her he started smiling. 'She was always very kind. Her heart was more open than most people, and she never thought I was inferior because of my stature.' His smile turned into a bitter and concerned frown. 'I thought I'd never see her again.' He reached out and gently touched her cheek.

As if that had triggered something, her eyes fluttered open. They were a brilliant aqua and they immediately focused on Sandy. "Sanderson?" She stared for a moment before her eyebrows shot up, closely followed by the rest of her and she jumped off of the couch. "Where am I? What is this place? Where is my brother?" Her eyes landed on her still sleeping co-pilot. "Aldie!" She shot to him, shaking his arm and trying to wake him.

"Wha-...?" He scrunched his eyes together and reached for his head. "What happened?" His voice was so deep and smooth he sounded like he was supposed to be the voice in a romance novel.

While the siblings fawned over each other I leaned down to whisper to Sandy. "Why are they so gorgeous?"

He snickered before responding. 'They're children of Tsar Taurus. Neither of them chose to become the next constellation of their family since it would mean that one would die before the other. Their younger brother took over the family duties and they became Star Pilots.' Almost as if they'd heard him, the two of them immediately stopped speaking and looked directly at Sandy.

After a second of stunned silence, Aldebaran spoke up again. "Sanderson?"

Sandy slowly smiled and waved a little. Ain almost started crying while she stared at Sandy. She stood up and launched herself at him, knocking him over in a hug. "I knew you were alive!" Now she was crying as Sandy hugged her back. After a moment she pulled away, taking a look at him. "What happened to you?"

Sandy waved it off. 'I'll tell you later, it's a long story. How did youget here?'

"We've been looking for you." Aldebaran sat up, holding his side. "For any of the Star Pilots really, but Ain was looking for you specifically. She held out hope that you had survived the Dream Pirates." He glanced around at the glacial room. "I have to admit I wasn't as hopeful." He looked back at Sandy. "Where are we? Exactly?"

"At the Sanctuary of Jack Frost." Both of the newcomers looked at me. "But the planet's called Earth if that's what you meant. You're a few miles north of the South Pole and a few hundred feet underground." At that moment, Del snored and the two of them jumped around startled. "That's just Del. Don't worry about him he's harmless."

"What is he?" Ain stared in confused horror at the sleeping mountain of scales.

'A dragon. It's a creature native to this world, though nearly extinct by now. He really is quite harmless.'

"What are those symbols?" Ain looked on confused. "Sanderson, why haven't you spoken?"

Sandy looked helplessly at me. He couldn't speak, and more importantly, he wouldn't. I nodded, knowing he'd need a translator. "That is how he speaks. Those symbols, there the only way he has to communicate."

"I don't understand." Aldebaran had moved to sit on the couch. He sounded less skeptical and more confused.

"Sandy doesn't speak. He hasn't said a word for thousands of years. He's the Sandman, bringer of dreams - a Guardian. He's afraid that if he speaks then he'll wake up a kid who's dreaming."

Both of them stared at Sandy with their jaws hanging and their eyes wide. "A Guardian?!" They said it in unison and I almost wanted to laugh since they were twins and all. "By which Constellation?" Ain seemed a lot more talkative than her brother. Sandy created a Dream Sand moon and pointed up. The two of them glanced towards the ceiling. "The Lunars?" Sandy nodded.

"But the Tsar and Tsarina Lunar died in a battle with the Nightmare King." I winced a little. I hadn't really thought about how people new to our world would feel about Pitch. Great now it's just more to worry about with him. "Didn't you know?" Aldebaran finally let go of his side.

Sandy nodded and started flashing his symbols, which I translated. "The Tsar and Tsarina did die but their son didn't. He's the new Tsar Lunar and he lives above us in the Moon Clipper - disguised as the moon this world lost." He smiled gratefully at me. I smiled back but then added on. "He's been creating Immortals nearly as long as he's been here. There's thousands of us. Not all were created by him, though."

"The young Tsar lives?" Ain brought her hands to her face, almost in tears again. "The entire Alliance was sure he had perished too." She smiled tearfully. "It's a miracle."

"Actually, it was Nightlight. He saved Tsar Lunar and managed to imprison Pitch here on Earth for a few thousand years."

Both of them went on alert. "Pitch Black!"

"The Nightmare King is here!" Aldebaran sounded furious... and pretty dangerous.

"He's not a threat -"

"What of the Dream Pirates? The Fearlings?!" Ain was freaking out. I really didn't blame her - considering that he was the biggest villain in their entire history.

"There aren't any Dream Pirates. I've never seen one in my entire life on this planet." And I've spent a loooot of time with Pitch. "Fearlings are still hanging around, but they're nothing we can't handle. Nightmares are a shit ton creepier, though." Sandy shuddered a little, involuntarily.

"What nightmares? The ones caused by Fearlings?" Aldebaran and Ain had a way of picking up where the other left off in the conversation.

I shook my head. "No, Nightmares like horses - but I see where you'd get confused. They're corrupted streams of Sandy's Dream Sand. They have all his powers but they're dark and twisted... and they almost killed him a while back." Sandy winced, grimacing.

"What?" Ain looked horrified. Again, I didn't blame her.

I waved it off. "It's ancient history by now. It's not important. What is important is that you guys get settled in."

"What do you mean 'settled in'? We have found Sanderson but there are far more Star Pilots to find." Aldebaran set his jaw looking like he was determined to get back to his job. "We will be leaving soon." Ain looked a bit disheartened by that announcement, but not enough to disagree.

"Uh, well... that might be a little hard."

"Why?" Ain had a lot more innocence in her comments than Aldebaran, almost naive.

"When your Star landed, it broke in half. It might not be salvageable. North can take a look but -"

"Who is North?"

"He's another Guardian. Most of the mortals on Earth know him as Santa Claus. He's sort of the unofficial leader of the Guardians."

"Who are you?" Aldebaran studied me, not really giving away anything other than curiosity. "You seem to know an awful lot."

I smiled, faintly amused by the way he'd phrased the question. "I'm Story Tale. I am the spirit of stories and storytelling. I'm close friends with the Guardians, even though I'm not one."

"Well, you wouldn't be."

My eyebrows rose at what I interpreted as an insult. "Excuse me?" I could see Sandy cringing next to me.

"There are no Guardians of storytelling. The standard four are Dreams, Friendship, Happiness, and Creativity. Though some worlds deviate depending on how their children or culture react and grow, nearly all of the planets in the Alliance have those four." Aldebaran sounded like he was reciting common information that was passed around to noobs often.

Well, I'm not a noob. "Hate to break it to you, but we aren't part of the Alliance. We don't care about your standard four because our system works just fine thank you."

"What do you mean?" Ain - who had sat down on the couch next to her brother - sounded a lot nicer in her queries than Aldebaran. Girl's got people skills. "What are the Guardians of your world?"

"Well, Sandy here is the Guardian of Dreams." Said immortal grinned proudly next to me, bringing out a smile of my own. You simply couldn't be mad at Sandy. "North is the Guardian of Wonder." Aldebaran sort of nodded like that was acceptable. "Jack - who's living room you're sitting in - is the Guardian of Fun, and also the newest Guardian. Tooth is the Guardian of Memories. And Bunny - Bunnymund - is the Guardian of Hope."

Ain's eyebrows rose. "Five Guardians?"

"And only one is standard." Aldebaran looked at his sister, but Ain wasn't quite paying attention.

"What is Tsar Lunar thinking? Surely he must know of the standard, the Moon Clipper's records would have told him that." She was talking more to herself than to any of us.

"I'm sure he does. But things are different here. First off there aren't that many mortals who really believe in any immortals - once they hit puberty anyway. Secondly, with Pitch stuck on this world we sort of had to build systems to combat his influence."

"That's right you said he's here. Is this why you seem to think that he isn't a threat?"

"I know he isn't. He's had a few little spurts of rebellion over the years but each time we've managed to shut him down before there was any permanent damage. We have him handled."

Sandy flashed the symbols that translated to, 'Especially now that we have Jack.'

Aldebaran caught the symbols. "What did he say?"

I repeated Sandy's words before adding on. "Jack - being the Guardian of Fun - is the exact opposite of Fear. Basically, we laugh at Pitch to defeat him." The twins didn't look quite convinced but I kept going. "Jack's our main defense against Pitch. Tooth and Sandy make up the second. Sandy gives good dreams to keep the kids peaceful and happy and Tooth reminds them of all the times they've been brave and happy in the face of fear. Bunny allows the kids to believe that they can get through dark times and see the light. North shows them that even in the dark there is a light and that the light can grow to snuff out the darkness and fear. The Guardians work together, every day, to keep Pitch's influence to a minimum."

"That seems like a fairly sturdy plan, I'll admit." Ain looked at her brother.

"That said, when an unknown and dark entity appears out of the shadows, people will be afraid. And under the Nightmare King's influence, that fear will grow and fester - destroying everything." Aldebaran looked between the three of us. "It's what destroyed the Alliance. It's where Pitch Black gains all of his power." He looked at me specifically now. "I'm sorry, but there is no stopping fear." Ain looked like she was in complete agreement, even if she didn't like it.

"People are scared of the unknown. Everyone on Earth - at least everyone I can get my hands on - knows about Pitch." Sandy, as well as the twins, looked at me shocked. "It works like a vaccine. Introduce a harmless version and when - if - the real one attacks, people will be ready and able to fight him off. I tell my believers stories about all the times he's been defeated - by many different immortals. Not just Guardians. Not one of them would be scared of Pitch Black if he stepped in front of them." I said my words with confidence because the longer I'd been doing this, the less kids were scared. It was almost a perfect system. "They know full well who he is, but they aren't scared of him."

"How can you be sure?" Aldebaran was definitely the harder one to convince.

"Because I stress how human he is." I glanced around at the other three in the room, aware that they were technically aliens - as was Pitch - despite their human appearance. "Well, you know what I mean. I make sure to tell the kids about how flawed he is, about how he has hopes and dreams like them. They don't see him as some evil creature out to destroy the world, they think of him like the old weird guy down the street with no friends. They're wary of him but not scared." I wasn't about to have the kids blindly running up to Fearlings and getting hurt. "Some of them probably even feel sorry for him."

Ain looked at me, horrified. "Why would you ever allow them to pity the Nightmare King?!"

I was angered and insulted by that statement. In equal parts. I was also, however, dumbfounded at the ignorance. "Because he didn't use to be."

Anger clouded Aldebaran's face. "What does it matter? He singlehandedly destroyed countless worlds by his actions."

"Yes, the Fearlings possessing Kozmotis Pitchiner wrecked havoc on your world, I'm well aware." Both of them looked a little shocked by my knowledge of the former General's name. "He is still in there - trapped, by the very same Fearlings. Held hostage every day of his agonizingly long life. Alone. In a hole. In the ground. With thousands of Fearlings' voices hissing and screaming in his mind nonstop. That's a fate I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy. Kozmotis didn't deserve that, and he still doesn't."

"How would you know? You speak as if you have firsthand knowledge."

I took a breath and calmed down real quick. If I kept on this conversation at the pace I was going I'd let slip right there the source of my knowledge. "There's a mental illness here on Earth called schizophrenia. The people who have it hear voices all day. Some of them are audible and discernible, others swarm and bleed together to create white noise. The point is, they hear what Kozmotis does, every day - or at least the closest equivalent. However, there's medication to stop the voices that they hear, Kozmotis doesn't get that luxury. There's no off switch for him."

"That doesn't excuse the fact that he allowed the Fearlings to escape in the first place." Aldebaran seemed hell bent on keeping Pitch the villain. Well, he wouldn't be the first one.

I stared at the Star Pilot, took a good long look. From what I'd discerned from the few minutes I'd known him and his sister, I could already tell which roles they fell into. I could pretty much read them like a book. Both of them had spent probably the entirety of their lives fighting Pitch - dealing with the aftermath of what he'd done. Nothing would ever change that. I'd accepted what Pitch had done long ago back when I first began to consider him my friend. I knew what he'd done before I ever met him. However, I also knew who he was now. He had changed.

"You think he just gave up one day and opened the door, don't you?" It was really a rhetorical question but he nodded regardless. I sighed. "You both know who Kozmotis was before the Fearlings were corralled, right?" Again, nods. "Do you know what happened to his family? Why he ended up defeating so many Dream Pirates and became famed for his actions?" Hesitation. Uncertainty. "Dream Pirates killed his wife and daughter. While he was off fighting some of them, the rest plotted a sneak attack to take out what he held the most dear. He returned just in time to see them leaving his home in near ruin. He found his wife's body but never did find his daughter. He assumed that the Pirates had taken her. Either way, she was dead too.

"In a fit of rage and grief, he hunted them down and slaughtered a great deal of them before turning the rest over to the Constellations. Afterward, he fell into a deep depression that wouldn't go away no matter what he did." As I spoke of Pitch's behalf, I couldn't help but feel more empathy towards him than ever before - having been through the same not so long ago. "So when someone was needed to guard the prison, he volunteered. After all, it wasn't like he was leaving anyone behind." I stared at the twins hard. I could see on their faces that they were starting to feel for the guy. "Now I don't know how long he kept watch but eventually, one or more of the Fearlings managed to copy his daughter's voice so well that he believed it was her. He held out a lot longer than most with his daughter screaming and crying for him to save her, to let her out. She was locked in with the darkest creatures of your world." I looked between them. "Eventually in a moment of weakness, a broken man tried to save his daughter and accidentally let the Fearlings loose. Tell me you wouldn't do the same for each other."

They each looked at the other and I saw them accept what I'd said. "What's worse is that the Fearlings - thousands of them mind you - flooded into his body, possessing him and literally twisting who he was into the worst villain your world has ever known. He barely had a second to realize he'd been tricked - barely time to regret his decision before Pitch Black was born. One moment of weakness and longing does not equate to allowing Fearlings to escape."

The two of them stared at me, mouths gaping like fish, trying to find a response. However before they could say anything, Jack walked in. "Oh, hey they're awake!" He grinned and walked over to the pow wow. After a moment his grin disappeared when he registered the looks on our faces. "What happened?"

"Nothing." I turned and left. I was done.